The A-Z Of Odd London Street Names (Part 1)

M@The A-Z Of Odd London Street Names (Part 1)Accommodation Road in Golders Green. Does exactly what it says on the sign.The famous Bleeding Heart Yard, near Farringdon.Crooked Usage in Finchley. We've mentioned this before, but it bears repeating.Downage, north of Hendon.Effort Street in Tooting. Is it worth the trouble to track it down?French Ordinary Court in the City. The name supposedly comes from a French eatery on this site before the Great Fire. An 'ordinary' was a fixed-price meal.Great Thrift in Petts Wood.Another 'G', Great Benty, north of Heathrow.Ha-Ha Road in Woolwich. (A ha-ha is a garden feature as well as a mirthful ejaculation.)Ion Square off Hackney Road. There's no charge.John Carpenter Street. One for horror/suspense fans. What sinister fate awaits this lurker?Kitcat Terrace, in Bow.

Patrick Hamilton described London as '20,000 Streets Under the Sky'. He didn't reveal just how many of them have ridiculous names. Having discovered the outlandish Crooked Usage in Finchley, our curiosity was piqued. With a little help from Londonist readers (thanks), and an unhealthy amount of time scanning map indices, we've put together an A-Z of the best. Here's the first part, covering A-K.

We got the photographic evidence via Google Maps, rather than getting out on the streets. We wouldn't want to be accused of having too much time on our hands. The list excludes 'rude' street names. We've already probed that one.